KR20230067668A - Systems, methods and media for providing improved remote control - Google Patents

Abstract

A system, method and medium for providing an improved remote control is provided. In some implementations, a method of using an enhanced remote control is provided, the method comprising: detecting, at the remote control, a user's fingerprint using a fingerprint sensor of the remote control; identifying the user from a plurality of users based on the fingerprint; authenticating, without user input, a user account corresponding to the identified user, the user account being associated with a media content service that hosts media content items and provides them to media devices paired with the remote controller; causing a plurality of indications of available media content items to be presented to a media device based on the authenticated user account; receiving a display selection of usable media content items through the remote controller; causing the selected media content item to begin presenting to the media device paired with the remote control; and causing content related to the media content item to be presented in a display area of the remote controller simultaneously with the presentation of the media content item to the media device.

Description

Systems, methods and media for providing improved remote control

CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 17/034,209, filed on September 28, 2020, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

The disclosed subject matter relates to systems, methods and media for providing an improved remote control.

Users often watch various types of video content, such as streaming content, broadcast content, user-generated content, and the like, on a television. However, it can be difficult to navigate the various types of content. Also, different users can access different user accounts on the same TV. For example, there may be several users within a household, each with a different account for a particular video content service. Continuing with this example, the video content service can provide personalized recommendations for each user account. However, it may be difficult to switch user accounts in connection with various video content services.

It is therefore desirable to provide a system, method and medium for providing an improved remote control.

According to various implementations of the disclosed subject matter, systems, methods and media are provided for providing an improved remote control.

According to some implementations of the disclosed subject matter, a method of using an improved remote control is provided, the method comprising: detecting, at the remote control, a user's fingerprint using a fingerprint sensor of the remote control; identifying the user from a plurality of users based on the fingerprint; authenticating, without user input, a user account corresponding to the identified user, the user account being associated with a media content service that hosts media content items and provides them to media devices paired with the remote controller; causing a plurality of indications of available media content items to be presented to a media device based on the authenticated user account; receiving a display selection of usable media content items through the remote controller; causing the selected media content item to begin presenting to the media device paired with the remote control; and causing content related to the media content item to be presented in a display area of the remote controller simultaneously with the presentation of the media content item to the media device.

In some implementations, the method further comprises automatically selecting a user profile from the user account associated with the plurality of user profiles based on the fingerprint.

In some implementations, the method further includes causing a plurality of indications of usable media content items to be presented on the media device while simultaneously causing a first control for navigating through the plurality of indications to be presented in a display area of the remote control. more includes

In some implementations, the method causes the selected media content item to begin presenting to the media device paired with the remote control, while a second control for manipulating playback of the selected media content item is displayed on the remote control's display. and further comprising the step of causing it to be presented in the region.

In some implementations, the plurality of indications of available media content items are personalized recommendations identified based on the authenticated user account.

In some implementations, the plurality of indications are received from a server associated with the media content service that hosts and provides the media content items to the media device.

In some implementations, the plurality of indications are received from a media device.

In some implementations, the method further includes: authenticating, without user input, a second user account corresponding to the identified user, the second user account hosting media content items and presenting them to a media device paired with the remote control. associated with a second media content service that does; receiving, through the remote controller, an input for switching to media content item browsing usable through the second media content service; and causing presentation of a second plurality of indications of media content items available through the second media content service to the media device based on the authenticated second user account.

In some implementations, the method further includes measuring a physiological parameter of the user using a sensor of the remote control.

In some implementations, the fingerprint sensor is located on the back of the remote and the display area is located on the front of the remote.

According to some implementations of the disclosed subject matter, there is provided a remote control device providing an enhanced remote control, the remote control device comprising a fingerprint sensor, a display area and a hardware processor coupled to the fingerprint sensor and the display area, the hardware processor comprising: detecting a user's fingerprint using a fingerprint sensor of the remote control device; identify the user from a plurality of users based on the fingerprint; without user input, authenticating a user account corresponding to the identified user, the user account being associated with a media content service that hosts media content items and provides them to media devices paired with the remote control device; cause a plurality of indications of available media content items to be presented to a media device based on the authenticated user account; receive a display selection of an usable media content item via the remote control device; cause the selected media content item to begin presenting to the media device paired with the remote control device; And simultaneously with the presentation of the media content item to the media device, content related to the media content item is presented in a display area of the remote controller.

According to some implementations of the disclosed subject matter, there is provided a non-transitory computer-readable medium containing computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause a hardware processor to perform a method of providing an enhanced remote control, the method comprising: a remote control In, detecting the user's fingerprint using the fingerprint sensor of the remote control; identifying the user from a plurality of users based on the fingerprint; authenticating, without user input, a user account corresponding to the identified user, the user account being associated with a media content service that hosts media content items and provides them to media devices paired with the remote controller; causing a plurality of indications of available media content items to be presented to a media device based on the authenticated user account; receiving a display selection of usable media content items through the remote controller; causing the selected media content item to begin presenting to the media device paired with the remote control; and causing content related to the media content item to be presented in a display area of the remote controller simultaneously with the presentation of the media content item to the media device.

According to some implementations of the disclosed subject matter, a system for providing an improved remote control is provided, the system comprising: at the remote control means for detecting a user's fingerprint using a fingerprint sensor of the remote control; means for identifying the user from a plurality of users based on the fingerprint; means for authenticating, without user input, a user account corresponding to the identified user, the user account being associated with a media content service that hosts media content items and provides them to media devices paired with the remote controller; means for causing a plurality of indications of available media content items to be presented to a media device based on the authenticated user account; means for receiving a display selection of media content items usable via the remote controller; means for causing the selected media content item to begin presenting to the media device paired with the remote control; and means for causing content associated with the media content item to be presented in a display area of the remote control concurrently with presentation of the media content item to the media device.

The various objects, configurations and advantages of the disclosed invention may be more fully understood by reference to the following detailed description of the disclosed invention when considered in conjunction with the following drawings, in which like reference numerals identify like elements.
1 shows an illustrative example of a schematic diagram of a system including an enhanced remote control in accordance with some implementations of the disclosed subject matter.
2A and 2B show illustrative examples, respectively, of top and back views of a remote control incorporating the mechanisms described herein, in accordance with some implementations of the disclosed subject matter.
3 shows an illustrative example of a process for using an enhanced remote control in accordance with some implementations of the disclosed subject matter.
4A and 4B show illustrative examples of user interfaces that may be presented on an enhanced remote control in accordance with some implementations of the disclosed subject matter.

According to various implementations, a mechanism for providing an enhanced remote control is provided.

In some implementations, the mechanisms described herein browse and select an available media content item, cause the selected media content item to be presented to a paired media device, manipulate playback of the media content item on the paired media device, and and/or a remote control that can be used to present content to a remote control device based on a media content item presented to a paired media device.

In some implementations, the remote control allows a user of the remote control to be authenticated to the user's user account (eg, a user account associated with a particular media content streaming service and/or any other suitable user account) without user input. For example, in some implementations, the remote control can include a fingerprint sensor capable of detecting the fingerprint of a user holding the remote control, and can identify the user based on the detected fingerprint. Continuing this example, in some implementations, the remote control retrieves user credentials for one or more user accounts associated with the user that have been previously saved by the user (eg, user credentials corresponding to multiple media content providers). It can search and uses user credentials to authenticate a user to one or more user accounts. In some implementations, by authenticating a user to a user account associated with a particular media content service, the mechanisms described herein allow the user to enter a password and select which of multiple user accounts to log in to or log in to the user account. Allows users to browse personalized content recommendations without being asked to provide other account information to access.

In some implementations, the fingerprint sensor can be positioned on the back of the remote control. For example, the remote control may have a shape tailored to the shape of a user's hand, and when the remote control is placed on the user's hand, a fingerprint sensor may be positioned on a rear area of the remote control corresponding to the position of the user's index finger.

In this specification, it should be noted that the fingerprint sensor is generally described as being located on the back of the remote control, but this is only an example. In some implementations, the fingerprint sensor can be positioned on the front of the remote control. For example, the remote controller may have a shape that conforms to the shape of the user's hand so that the thumb of the user's hand is located on the fingerprint sensor positioned on the front of the remote controller when the user holds the remote control in the user's palm. Additionally or alternatively, in some implementations, a fingerprint sensor may be positioned on one or both portions of the remote control (eg, to receive a fingerprint reading from the user's left thumb or right thumb). Additionally or alternatively, in some implementations, the remote control can include a loop structure in which a fingerprint sensor is positioned within the loop structure to read the fingerprint of a finger disposed within the loop structure.

In some implementations, the remote control can include a display area that can be used to present any suitable content. For example, in some implementations, the display area of the remote control can be used to present soft buttons (eg, graphical user interface buttons) that can be used to control a paired media device. In some implementations, the display area of the remote control used to present the soft buttons may be substituted for appropriate physical buttons on the remote control (eg, physical pause button, physical play button, physical volume adjustment button, and/or other suitable physical buttons). there is. In some implementations, soft buttons presented in the display area of the remote control can be presented dynamically based on the content presented on the paired media device. For example, at a first point in time, the paired media device may present an indication of available media content items that may be browsed by the user of the remote control. Continuing with this example, at a first point, the display area of the remote control may present soft buttons that may be used to navigate the display of available media content items, such as a directional pad, select buttons, and/or any suitable navigation buttons. there is. Further to this example, at a second point in time, the paired media device may begin presenting the particular media content item (eg, in response to selection of the particular media content item via the remote control). In some implementations, at a second point in time, the display area of the remote control is configured to present soft buttons that can be used to manipulate the playback of media content items, such as a pause button, a volume control control, and/or any other suitable play button. can switch

As another example, in some implementations, the display area can be used to present supplemental content related to the media content item being presented to the paired media device. As a more specific example, where the media content item is a sports-related media item, the display area of the remote control may present player statistics, team statistics, and/or any other suitable supplemental content related to the sports-related media item. As another more specific example, if the media content item is a television show or movie, the display area of the remote control may present information about one or more actors appearing at the current time in the media content item. In some implementations, the content presented in the display area of the remote control can be updated at any suitable point as the paired media device's presentation of the media content item progresses.

In some implementations, where the display area of a remote control presents both supplemental content and soft buttons for interacting with a paired media device, the display area can be divided in any suitable way. For example, in some implementations, an upper portion of the display area may be used to present dynamically generated soft buttons for interacting with a media device, and a lower portion of the display area may be used to present supplemental content associated with a media content item. can be used

In some implementations, the remote control can include any suitable sensor that can be used to detect and/or measure any suitable physiological parameter of the user. For example, in some implementations, the remote control has one or more light sources and light sensors that can be used to measure any suitable physiological parameter (eg, heart rate, oxygen saturation level, carbon dioxide level, and/or any other suitable metric). can include As another example, in some implementations, the remote control can include an infrared sensor that can be used to measure the user's current temperature. In some implementations, any sensor used to measure a user's physiological parameter is positioned such that the physiological parameter can be measured while the user is comfortably holding the remote control (e.g., on the rear portion of the remote control and/or any other suitable location).

In some implementations, the aforementioned fingerprint sensor and the sensor for detecting and/or measuring one or more physiological parameters of the user may be a single sensor. Alternatively, in some implementations, the aforementioned fingerprint sensor and a sensor for detecting and/or measuring one or more physiological parameters of the user may be co-located on a specific portion of the remote control. For example, the remote control may have a shape tailored to the shape of a user's hand, and when the remote control is placed on the user's hand, a fingerprint sensor and a sensor for detecting and/or measuring one or more physiological parameters of the user may be located at the location of the user's index finger. It can be positioned in the rear area of the remote control corresponding to . Continuing the example, when holding the remote control, the fingerprint of the user's index finger may be detected, and one or more physiological parameters of the user may be detected and/or measured.

This and other configurations of the improved remote control are described with respect to FIGS. 1-4B.

Referring to FIG. 1 , an illustrative example of a generalized schematic diagram of a system 100 including a media device, an enhanced remote control and a server is shown in accordance with some implementations of the disclosed subject matter.

As illustrated, system 100 may include an enhanced remote control device 102 that may be used to control one or more media devices, such as media device 120 . The enhanced remote control 102 can be coupled by a communications link 130 to a communications network 135 which can be coupled to a media device 120 via a communications link 140 . Additionally, server 150 is coupled to communication network 135 by communication link 160 so that remote control 102 and/or media device 120 can communicate with server 150 .

In a more specific example, as shown in FIG. 1 , the enhanced remote control 102 may include a touch sensor 106, a directional pad 108 (also referred to herein as a “d-pad”), or any other suitable directional input area. , a processor 110, one or more input devices 112, a fingerprint sensor 114, and a transmitter/receiver 116 that may be interconnected.

In some implementations, the enhanced remote control 102 may include memory and/or storage (not shown) for storing a computer program for controlling the processor 110 . For example, the computer program may be stored in read-only memory (ROM), electrically programmable read only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read only memory (EEPROM), flash memory, or the like.

Processor 110 may use a computer program to cause signals to be transmitted from enhanced remote control 102 over communication link 130 and communication network 135 to media device 120 over communication link 140 . These signals may be transmitted using transmitter/receiver 116, which may include one or more transmitters, receivers, antennas, transmitters/receivers, and the like. Transmitter/receiver 116 may transmit and/or receive signals using any suitable technology and/or frequency. For example, the transmitter/receiver 116 may transmit and/or receive radio signals, infrared signals, near infrared signals, ultrasonic signals, and the like.

Communications link 130, 140, 160 may be a remote control device 102, a media device, such as a radio frequency link, an infrared link, a near infrared link, a radio link, a network link, any other suitable communication link, or any suitable combination of such links. It may be any communication link suitable for data communication between 120 and/or server 150. In some implementations, communication link 130, communication link 140, and communication link 160 can be the same communication link or different communication links. For example, wireless signals can be transmitted from remote control 102 over communication network 135 (eg, the space between remote control device 102 and media device 120), and then media device 120. can be received from In such an example, communication link 130 and communication link 140 are the same.

As another example, a radio signal may be transmitted from the remote control 102 and received by a converter (not shown) that converts the radio signal into a near-infrared signal. In this example, the converter may transmit a near infrared signal, which may then be received by media device 120 . In this example, communication link 130 is a radio signal, communication link 140 is a near infrared signal and the converter is part of a communication network 135 .

Referring back to the remote control 102 , the remote control 102 may include a touch sensor 106 . Touch sensor 106 may include one or more touch sensors configured to detect when a surface is touched by an object, such as a user's thumb. In such an implementation, each of the one or more touch sensors may be a capacitor based touch sensor, a resistance based touch sensor, a pressure based touch sensor, a light based sensor, or the like. In a more specific implementation, the touch sensor 106 can detect when a surface is contacted by a conductive object, such as human skin.

Processor 110 can receive an output signal from touch sensor 106 to detect whether touch sensor 106 has been activated. In some implementations, the output from the touch sensor can be a binary indication of whether or not a touch was registered by the touch sensor 106 . Additionally, in some implementations, the direction of motion and/or speed of motion of an object contacting the touch sensor 106 can be detected based on an output from the touch sensor 106 . For example, outputs from multiple touch sensors that make up touch sensor 106 can be detected, and patterns of the outputs can be interpreted to determine motion direction and/or motion speed. In a more specific example, if the user moves their thumb across the touch sensor 106 from left to right, the sensor to the left of the touch sensor 106 will come before the touch sensor to the right of the touch sensor 106. can be activated. In this example, motion may be detected by determining a pattern in which a touch sensor is activated.

In some implementations, the touch sensor 106 can also correspond to a selectable button. For example, if a display associated with remote control 102 presents an OK button, touch sensor 106 may correspond to the OK button.

In some implementations, touch sensor 106 can also correspond to a touchpad that detects alphanumeric characters entered by a user of remote control 102 . For example, in some implementations, touch sensor 106 may use character recognition techniques to detect alphanumeric characters drawn on the surface of touch sensor 106 using a finger of a user of remote control 102 . In a more specific example, when a user wishes to enter a search term, website address, user credentials for a user account, and/or any other suitable information, the character recognition technique may be performed using the remote control 102 user's fingers. An alphanumeric character may be input in response to detecting an alphanumeric character drawn on the surface of the touch sensor 106 . In some implementations, the text recognition technique can be provided on a separate trackpad or touch sensor from touch sensor 106 .

In some implementations, remote control 102 can include a directional pad 108 . The directional pad 108 may include a number of switches that, when activated, indicate directional input. For example, the directional pad 108 may include buttons that a user can press to indicate directions. This button may activate one or more switches, and signals from the one or more switches may be correlated by processor 110 with the direction indicated by pressing the button.

Directional pad 108 and processor 110 may be configured to accept any suitable number of inputs in various directions, according to some implementations. For example, the processor 110 may be configured to detect input from the directional pad 108 in four directions (eg up, down, left and right). In another example, the processor 110 is configured to detect eight directional inputs from the directional pad 108 (eg, intermediate directions such as up, down, left, right, and upper right diagonal, upper left diagonal, lower right diagonal, and lower left diagonal). can be configured. In another example, processor 110 may be configured to detect input from directional pad 108 in any direction. In such an example, directional pad 108 can include a touch sensor that can be used to detect any position of an input on directional pad 108 .

In some implementations, remote control 102 can include fingerprint sensor 114 or any other suitable component capable of detecting a user's fingerprint. In some implementations, fingerprint sensor 114 can be a capacitive fingerprint sensor, an optical fingerprint sensor, and/or any other suitable type of sensor. In some implementations, processor 110 may be configured to receive a fingerprint detected using fingerprint sensor 114 and perform any suitable action(s) based on the received fingerprint. For example, as described in more detail below with respect to FIG. 3 , in some implementations, processor 110 may identify a particular user whose stored fingerprint corresponds to a received fingerprint. Continuing this example, in some implementations, processor 110 may then store user credentials for an account associated with a particular user (e.g., a user account associated with a particular video content streaming service and/or any other suitable user). account) can be authenticated. In a more specific example, upon placing remote control 102 in a user's hand, process 110 may receive the user's fingerprint using fingerprint sensor 114, and a plurality of numbers associated with the user corresponding to the received fingerprint. User accounts can be automatically authenticated (eg, logging a user into multiple user accounts each associated with a content provider, and selecting a corresponding user profile corresponding to a received fingerprint).

In some implementations, processor 110 is configured to detect motion (eg, rotational motion, linear motion, and/or orientation) based on signals from any suitable motion sensor and using any suitable technique. can be configured. When a user moves remote control 102, which includes a motion sensor (eg, accelerometer, gyroscope, or magnetometer), the motion sensor transmits motion information and/or orientation information related to remote control 102 to processor 110. can For example, rotational movement of remote control 102 may be detected by processor 110 using signals from one or more gyroscopes capable of detecting rotational movement of remote control 102 . As another example, linear motion and/or orientation of remote control 102 may be detected by processor 110 using signals from one or more accelerometers capable of detecting linear motion and/or orientation of remote control 100. there is. As another example, the motion and/or orientation of the remote control 102 is detected by the processor 110 using signals from one or more magnetometers capable of detecting the motion and/or orientation of the remote control 100 relative to the magnetic pole. It can be. As a further example, rotational motion and linear motion/orientation of remote control 102 may be detected by processor 110 using a combination of one or more gyroscopes, one or more accelerometers, and/or one or more magnetometers.

In some implementations, remote control 102 can detect certain gestures performed by the user. For example, the remote control 102 including a motion sensor may transmit information indicating that the user is shaking the remote control 102 to the processor 110, and in response to receiving the motion information, the processor 110 may transmit the remote control ( 102) from one operating mode to another.

In some implementations, the enhanced remote control 102 can include any other suitable input device 112. Input device 112 includes an alphanumeric keypad, power button, enter button, channel buttons, volume button, volume mute button, directional buttons, media play buttons (eg rewind, pause, play and fast forward buttons), used in media devices. and other suitable input features, such as a dedicated button for accessing a downloadable application to access a downloadable application, a microphone or other suitable audio input, a camera, and the like. For example, in some implementations, remote control 102 can include a microphone that can be used for any suitable purpose. As a more specific example, in some implementations, a microphone may be used to receive voice queries (eg, to initiate playback of a particular media content item, execute a search query, and/or any other suitable voice query). may be processed by remote control device 102 or from remote control device 102 to another device for processing (e.g., to media device 120, server 150, and/or any other suitable device). can be transmitted As another more specific example, in some implementations, the microphone is any suitable audible sound that can be used as a trigger to present an indication of the location of the remote control 102 (eg, by causing the remote control to emit an audible tone or beep). (e.g. applause, etc.). In some implementations, input device 112 can include hardware buttons and/or software buttons (eg, programmable buttons). In some implementations, input device 112 may also include other inputs, such as a computer keyboard, cursor controller, dial, switchbank, lever, touchscreen, and/or any other suitable input device.

In a more specific example, remote control 102 may include a speaker that emits an audible tone. For example, using a network controller integrated within remote control 102, a media device paired with remote control 102 may send a signal to remote control 102, causing the remote control's 102 speaker to emit an audible tone, thereby The location of (102) can be displayed to the user of the remote control (102). In another example, using a network controller integrated within remote control 102, an application running on a computing device can request a server to send commands to remote control 102 (or a media device paired with remote control 102) and , the speaker of the remote control device 102 may emit an audible tone to indicate the location of the remote control 102 to the user of the remote control 102 .

System 100 is used to view media content listings and/or obtain and present content items from various sources (eg, broadcast content, on-demand content, locally stored content, Internet content, streaming content, live streaming content, etc.) may include one or more media devices 120, such as media devices for For example, media device 120 may be implemented as a television, smart television, set top box, streaming media device, digital media receiver, computer, game console, optical media player, or the like. The enhanced remote control 102 and media device 120 may be local to each other or remote to each other. For example, the enhanced remote control 102 and media device 120 may be located in the same room.

In particular, media device 120 may include display/input device 122, processor 124, memory 126, and one or more transmitters, receivers, and/or transmitter/receiver 128, which may be interconnected. .

In some implementations, media device 120 may include a storage device such as a hard drive, digital video recorder, solid state storage device, removable storage device, or any other suitable device for storing guide information and/or remote control commands. can In a more specific example, the storage device may store a computer program for controlling processor 124 of media device 120 (eg, responding to commands received from enhanced remote control 102 ).

Processor 124 uses a computer program to present content on display/input device 122 and allows a user to interact with the content and send and receive data over communication link 140 using transmitter/receiver 128. You can control which interfaces are available. In some implementations, the transmitter/receiver 128 may transmit and/or receive radio signals, infrared signals, near infrared signals, ultrasonic signals, and the like. If transmitter/receiver 116 and transmitter/receiver 128 operate using different types of signals, a converter (not shown) converts instructions transmitted using one type of signal (e.g., a radio signal) to another type. It can be used to convert into a signal (eg, a near-infrared signal) of Data received over communication link 140 or any other communication link may be received from any suitable source. Transmitter/receiver 116 and transmitter/receiver 128 may also operate using any suitable type of signal, including digital signals, analog signals, and the like, or combinations thereof.

Display/input device 122 may include an input device such as a computer keyboard, cursor controller, one or more buttons, dials, switchbanks, levers, touch screens, and/or any other suitable input device.

In some implementations, commands issued by remote control 102 may be formatted based on the model and/or brand of media device 120 being controlled. For example, remote control 102 can be programmed with different codes and act as a universal remote control for controlling different types of media devices. In some implementations, formatting may be performed by a converter (not shown) that converts signals transmitted by remote control 102 into signals used by specific media devices 120 .

In a more specific example, remote control 102 and media device 120 are general-purpose devices such as computers or dedicated devices such as remote controls, smart phones, tablet computers, set-top boxes, smart TVs, game consoles, digital media receivers, servers, and the like, or such devices. It may be any suitable combination of devices. Such general purpose or special purpose devices may include any suitable components such as hardware processors (which may be microprocessors, digital signal processors, controllers, etc.), memories, communication interfaces, display controllers, input devices, and the like. For example, the media device 120 may be implemented as a set-top box, digital media receiver, smart TV, television, laptop computer, personal computer, server, smart phone, tablet computer, game console, and the like.

In some implementations, remote control 102 and media device 120 can send and receive commands via instances of applications running on remote control 102 and media device 120, respectively. In some implementations, the application formats commands based on the model and/or brand of the media device 120 being controlled, queries server 150, initiates a particular media content service, provides information to different users and perform any suitable function(s), such as managing storage of user credentials for different media content services and/or other suitable function(s).

Referring to FIG. 2A , an illustrative example of a plan view of a remote control 200 that implements the remote control 102 described with respect to FIG. 1 is shown in accordance with some implementations of the disclosed subject matter. In some implementations, remote control 200 can include various buttons, such as buttons 202 - 230 , which can include selectable touch-sensitive buttons 202 and directional pad 204 . In some implementations, any of the buttons 202-230 may be omitted, and in some such implementations, the functions described herein with respect to the buttons 202-230 are the functions of the remote control 200, as described below. Soft buttons dynamically generated in the display area 250 may be used.

In some implementations, selectable touch-sensitive button 202 can include a touch sensor, such as touch sensor 106 of FIG. 1 , which can detect a touch of a surface of selectable touch-sensitive button 202 . Also, a processor such as the processor 110 of FIG. 1 may detect pressing of the touch-sensitive button 202 as an individual operation of the touch-sensitive button 202 . For example, pressing selectable touch sensitive button 202 may complete (or inhibit) a circuit, and completion of the circuit may be detected by processor 110 . Any other suitable technique may also be used to indicate that touch sensitive button 202 has been pressed by the user. For example, pressing the touch sensitive button 202 can change the capacitance of a circuit, activate a piezoelectric transducer, and create a sound.

As another example, a combination of signals may be requested to indicate a press of a selectable touch sensitive button 202 . In a particular example, processor 110 may require both a touch to be sensed on touch-sensitive button 202 and a press on touch-sensitive button 202 to be detected before responding to a button press on touch-sensitive button 202. . In some cases, this means that an accidental press of touch-sensitive button 202 (eg, a press by an inanimate object such as a book placed on remote control 200) is interpreted by processor 110 as a button press by the user. can be banned

The remote control 200 may also include a directional pad 204 that can be pressed to indicate directional input. For example, pressing directional pad 204 at a particular point may complete (or inhibit) one or more circuits, and completion of one or more circuits may be detected by processor 110 . Processor 110 may determine which direction has been indicated based on which circuit(s) have been completed. For example, if the right side of the directional pad (as shown in Figure 5) is pressed, this may complete a circuit indicating to the processor 110 that the right side of the directional pad has been pressed. In another example, the directional pad 204 is one or more touch sensors that detect directional input from the user (eg, the user's thumb sliding from the touch sensitive button 202 to the right portion of the directional pad 204). can include

In some implementations, remote control 200 may also include a motion sensor (not shown) to sense rotational and/or linear motion of remote control 200 and/or orientation of remote control 200 . For example, when a user moves the remote controller 200 including a motion sensor (eg, gyroscope, accelerometer, magnetometer, etc.), the motion sensor transmits motion and/or orientation information related to the remote controller 200 to a processor ( 110) can be transmitted. As described herein, the processor 110 uses a motion sensor to detect a signal indicative of the motion of the remote control 200, and to determine the orientation of the remote control (e.g., which part of the remote control 200 is facing up and A signal indicating whether or not) may be detected, and a signal indicating a specific gesture (eg, shaking, swing, etc.) may be detected.

In some implementations, remote control 200 may include other suitable input buttons in addition to touch sensitive buttons 202 and directional pad 204 .

In some implementations, remote control 200 can include a power button 206 for controlling the power state of a media device, such as media device 120 . For example, when power button 206 is pressed, processor 110 can cause a signal to be sent to media device 120 to power on (eg, from an off or sleep state). Additionally, in some implementations, a selector (not shown) may be included that may be used to select a device from multiple devices to power on by pressing power button 206 . These selectors may be, for example, sliding switches, buttons respectively corresponding to various media devices, and the like. In some implementations, remote control 200 can include an indicator to indicate to the user which media device is currently selected.

In some implementations, remote control 200 can include input buttons 208 for controlling selected inputs of media device 120 . For example, if media device 120 is a television, it may have multiple inputs, such as one or more High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) inputs, one or more coaxial inputs, one or more component video inputs, one or more DisplayPort inputs, one or more fiber optic inputs. can have Pressing the input button 208 may cause the processor 110 to send a command to the media device 120 to change the selected input. Input selection may be performed using any suitable technique. For example, in some implementations, after pressing enter button 208, a list of selectable inputs may be displayed on a display connected to media device 120 and the user may press and hold enter button 208 and/or repeatedly. The desired input can be selected by pressing , or by using the directional pad 204 to navigate to a specific input and pressing the touch sensor 202 to select a specific input.

In some implementations, remote control 200 may include a Picture-in-Picture (PiP) button 210 . For example, when the user presses the PiP button 210, the processor 110 may overwrite content from a first source (eg, the first channel) that is currently displayed from a second source (eg, a second channel). ) to the media device 120 to display content from. In such an example, content from the second source may be displayed, for example, in a corner of a display coupled to media device 120 .

In some implementations, remote control 200 can include a mute button 214 for muting the sound output from media device 120 .

In some implementations, remote control 200 may include a home button 216 for returning to the home screen of media device 120 and/or for exiting the current screen and returning to the main input. For example, if the media device 120 being controlled using the remote controller 200 is a digital media receiver running an operating system having a home screen, a command transmitted in response to pressing the home button 216 is a digital media receiver. You can make the media receiver go to the home screen. As another example, if the media device 120 being controlled using the remote control 200 is a set-top box from a cable provider, the command sent in response to pressing the home button 216 indicates that the set-top box is currently being displayed. You can exit any screen and return to the last channel you were tuned to on the set-top box.

In some implementations, if media device 120 is currently running an application, pressing home button 216 can cause media device 120 to display the application's home screen. Additionally, in this implementation, pressing and holding the home button 216 may cause the media device 120 to navigate to the home screen of the media device 120 .

In some implementations, remote control 200 can include volume buttons 218 and channel buttons 220 . Volume button 218 and channel button 220 may be used to control the volume output and channel output of media device 120, respectively. These buttons may be located on either side of the directional pad 204. This allows the user to reach the volume buttons 218 and channel buttons 220 by holding the remote control 200 in their hands with their thumbs near the touch sensitive buttons 202 and directional pad 204.

In some implementations, remote control 200 can include a voice command button 222 for initiating a voice command function on media device 120 . After pressing the voice command button 222, the user may be prompted to speak a voice command to cause the media device 120 to perform a function. Any suitable technique for prompting a user with a voice command, such as sound, image, etc., may be used. Alternatively, the user may not be prompted to speak a voice command, but pressing a button causes the command to media device 120 to be ready to receive the voice command. Media device 120 and/or remote control 200 may be configured to recognize any suitable voice command. For example, a command for duplicating an action occurring when a button of the remote controller 200 is pressed may be recognized. As another example, a user may initiate a search using a voice command. As another example, a user can tune to a particular channel by number and/or name (eg, channel 451, channel 2, "CBA", "Food Channel", etc.).

In some implementations, a microphone may be included in media device 120 for receiving voice commands. Additionally or alternatively, a microphone for receiving voice commands may be included in remote control 200 . If a microphone is included in remote control 200, voice commands may be interpreted by processor 110 and/or transmitted to media device 120 for interpretation. Additionally, in some implementations, a microphone can be used to detect trigger sounds (eg, handclaps, and/or any other suitable trigger sound). In some implementations, in response to detection of a trigger sound, remote control 200 can be programmed to present an indication of the location of remote control 200, for example by emitting a specific tone, beep, or other audible sound.

In some implementations, remote control 200 can include a guide button 224 that can launch a program guide of available media content. For example, such a guide may be an electronic program guide that displays available programming to the user, and may be organized based on time, channel, category, and the like. As another example, such a guide may include an over-the-top listing of content, such as television shows and/or movies, that may be retrieved and displayed by media device 120 .

In some implementations, remote control 200 may include a back button 226 for navigating back to previously displayed screens. For example, if the user navigates through the menus of the media device 120, pressing the back button 226 may cause the media device to return to the menu of the previous level from which the current level was selected. As another example, if the user switches the channel tuned by media device 120 from a first channel to a second channel, pressing back may cause media device 120 to switch back to the first channel. As another example, if media device 120 is running an application, back button 226 may have a function assigned by the application, which may include a back function.

In some implementations, remote control 200 can include a menu button 228 for invoking a menu on media device 120 . For example, pressing menu button 228 may cause media device 120 to open a menu. As another example, when media device 120 is running an application, pressing menu button 228 may present additional options and/or a menu related to the application to the user.

In some implementations, remote control 200 can include media buttons 230 for controlling playback of media by media device 120 . For example, media buttons 230 may include a play button, a pause button, a fast forward button, a rewind button, a skip forward button, any other suitable media button, and/or any suitable combination thereof. As shown in FIG. 2A , buttons more commonly available to users (eg play and pause buttons) are centered relative to less commonly used buttons (eg rewind and fast forward). can come up Additionally or alternatively, different media buttons may have different shapes to differentiate the buttons from one another. These configurations may facilitate the user to press the correct button while the user's gaze is not directed to remote control 200 but instead to a display connected to, for example, media device 120 .

In some implementations, certain buttons may have embossed letters and/or symbols (e.g., the “+” and “-” of channel buttons 220) and/or the buttons themselves may be raised (e.g., Buttons 214, 216, 226 and 228 allow a user to more easily identify them without looking at remote control 200.

In some implementations, remote control 200 may have a display area 250 in which any suitable content may be presented. Although a display area 250 is shown in addition to the other buttons of the remote control 200 discussed above, in some implementations the remote control 200 may have a display area ( 250) can be dynamically generated. For example, in some implementations, a soft button representing a directional pad may be presented in display area 250 . As another example, in some implementations, soft buttons for manipulating playback of media content (e.g., rewind or fast forward, pause playback, resume playback, change the volume of audio content, and/or buttons for manipulating playback) any other suitable button) may be presented in the display area 250 . Continuing the example, such soft buttons for manipulating playback of media content may be presented in display area 250 instead of providing media buttons 230 . In some implementations, content presented on display area 250 can be contextually determined based on content presented on media device 120 as described below with respect to FIG. 3 . In some implementations, display area 250 can span any suitable portion of remote control 200 . For example, in some implementations display area 250 can span most of remote control 200 .

In some implementations, remote control 200 may include a trackpad for receiving alphanumeric characters from a user of remote control 200 . For example, in some implementations, the trackpad can include any suitable keys that correspond to any suitable letters, numbers, or other characters, which allow the user to enter a search term, website address, or user credentials for a user account. and/or input any other suitable information. In some implementations, remote control 200 and/or the media device with which remote control 200 is paired can use any suitable text completion technique(s) to automatically populate text as it is entered by a user. For example, if the user is entering the name of a television show, remote control 200 and/or the media device with which remote control 200 is paired may use any suitable autofill or text prediction algorithm(s) to assist the user. You can update the list of suggestions as you type.

Referring to FIG. 2B , an example of a rear view 260 of remote control 200 is shown, in accordance with some implementations of the disclosed subject matter. As shown, the back of the remote controller 200 may include a fingerprint sensor 262 . In some implementations, fingerprint sensor 262 can be positioned in a position on the back of remote control 200 such that a user's index finger can be positioned relative to fingerprint sensor 262 when the user is holding remote control 200. As described above with respect to FIG. 1 , in some implementations, fingerprint sensor 262 can be a capacitive fingerprint sensor, an optical fingerprint sensor, and/or any other suitable type of fingerprint sensor.

In some implementations, remote control 200 may include any other suitable sensor for calculating one or more physiological metrics. For example, in some implementations, remote control 200 may include a light source and a light sensor that detects and measures reflected light. In some embodiments, the light source can emit light of any suitable wavelength, such as optical light, infrared light, and/or any other suitable wavelength. In some implementations, the light source and light sensor can be used to calculate any suitable physiological metric, such as the user's heart rate, the user's oxygen saturation value, the user's carbon dioxide saturation level, and/or any other suitable physiological metric. In some implementations, the same light source and light sensor can be used to calculate multiple physiological metrics, such as heart rate values and oxygen saturation values. Additionally, in some implementations, remote control 200 may include a first light source and light sensor pair operated with optical light used to calculate a first physiological metric (eg, heart rate), and a second physiological metric (eg, heart rate). and a second light source and light sensor pair powered by infrared light used to calculate carbon dioxide levels). As another example, in some implementations, remote control 200 may include a temperature sensor (eg, an infrared sensor) capable of measuring a user's temperature.

In some implementations, the aforementioned fingerprint sensor 262 and the sensor for detecting and/or measuring one or more physiological parameters of the user may be a single sensor. Alternatively, in some implementations, the aforementioned fingerprint sensor 262 and a sensor for detecting and/or measuring one or more physiological parameters of the user may be co-located on a specific portion of the remote control. For example, the remote control 200 may have a shape tailored to the shape of a user's hand, and when the remote control 200 is placed on the user's hand, the fingerprint sensor 262 and one or more physiological parameters of the user are detected and/or A sensor for measurement may be positioned on the rear area of the remote controller 200 corresponding to the user's index finger position. Continuing with this example, when holding the remote control 200, the fingerprint of the user's index finger may be detected, and one or more physiological parameters of the user may be detected and/or measured.

In some implementations, the calculated physiological metric may be presented and/or stored in any suitable manner. For example, in some implementations, a measured physiological metric (e.g., the user's current heart rate, the user's current temperature, the user's current oxygen saturation, the user's current carbon dioxide level, the user's current blood pressure, and/or any other A suitable physiological metric) may be presented on the display 250 of the remote control 200 . As another example, in some implementations, the measured physiological metric may be stored in association with a user account for which remote control 200 has been authenticated. As a more specific example, when the remote control 200 authenticates a specific user for a user account (e.g., using the fingerprint sensor 262 as shown in FIG. 2B and described below with respect to FIG. 3) ), the remote controller 200 may cause the measured physiological metric to be stored in a health data area associated with a user account. Continuing this particular example, in some implementations, the stored health data may be stored relative to the current date or time of the measurement. In some such implementations, health data can be accessed by logging into a user account from any suitable user device (eg, cell phone, tablet computer, wearable computer, desktop computer, and/or any other suitable user device).

Referring to FIG. 3 , an illustrative example 300 of a process for using a remote control device in accordance with some implementations of the disclosed subject matter is shown.

Process 300 may begin at 302 by detecting a fingerprint at a fingerprint sensor of a remote control device paired with a media device. In some implementations, the media device can be any suitable type of media device, such as a television, smart television, streaming media device connected to a television, speaker, projector, and/or any other suitable type of media device. As described above and shown with respect to FIGS. 1 and 2B , the fingerprint sensor may be any suitable type of fingerprint sensor, such as a capacitive fingerprint sensor, an optical fingerprint sensor, and/or any other suitable type of fingerprint sensor.

Additionally, as discussed and shown above with respect to FIG. 2B, the fingerprint sensor can be positioned anywhere on the remote control device, such as on the top back of the remote control device, such that the user's finger is placed on the fingerprint sensor when the user is holding the remote control device. so that it can be placed comfortably. In a more specific example, the remote control device may have a shape generally tailored to the shape of a user's hand, and a fingerprint sensor may be positioned on a rear area of the remote control device corresponding to a location of a user's index finger when the remote control is placed in the user's hand. there is. In another more specific example, the remote control device may have a loop structure formed on the rear surface of the remote control device, and a fingerprint sensor is integrated into the loop structure so that a fingerprint can be detected when a finger is placed on the fingerprint sensor of the loop structure.

In this specification, it is generally described that the fingerprint sensor is located on the back of the remote control device, but it should be noted that this is only an example. In some implementations, a fingerprint sensor can be positioned on the front of the remote control device. For example, the remote control device may have a shape that conforms to the shape of the user's hand so that the thumb of the user's hand is positioned on the fingerprint sensor positioned on the front of the remote control device when the remote control device is held in the user's palm. Additionally or alternatively, in some implementations, a fingerprint sensor may be positioned on one or both portions of the remote control device (eg, to receive a fingerprint readout from a user's left thumb or right thumb).

In some implementations, the fingerprint sensor can detect any suitable information corresponding to a fingerprint, such as locations of ridges and valleys in a fingerprint and/or any other suitable information.

At 304, process 300 can identify the user associated with the fingerprint. In some implementations, process 300 can identify a user in any suitable way. For example, in some implementations, process 300 determines any suitable feature or feature of a fingerprint (eg, location of ridges and/or valleys and/or any other suitable feature or feature of a detected fingerprint). A comparison may be made with the characteristics or features of stored fingerprints of known users of the remote control device. As a more specific example, in some implementations, a remote control device may receive and store fingerprints of a group of users (eg, during initial setup or configuration of the remote control device), and process 300 may include fingerprints stored in the group of users (eg, during initial setup or configuration of the remote control device). Alternatively, it is possible to identify a user whose characteristics of the stored fingerprint) match the detected fingerprint (or match the characteristics of the detected fingerprint). In some implementations, a user group can include any suitable number of users (eg, 1, 2, 5, 10, and/or any other suitable number). In some implementations, the user's fingerprint may be added and stored at any suitable time(s). Further, in some implementations, the stored fingerprint may be stored in any suitable location, such as a remote control device's memory, a paired media device's memory, a server that the remote control device may query, and/or other suitable location.

At 306, process 300 can authenticate a user account associated with the identified user on the media device. In some cases, the user account may be a user account associated with a specific media content service, such as a specific media content streaming service. In some cases, process 300 may authenticate multiple user accounts associated with the identified user, where each user account corresponds to a different media content service. For example, in some implementations, process 300 can authenticate a first user account associated with an identified user corresponding to a first media content streaming service and an identified user corresponding to a second media content streaming service. A second user account associated with may be authenticated.

In some implementations, process 300 can authenticate a user account in any suitable way and using any suitable technique(s). For example, in some implementations, process 300 can log in to a user account using user credentials associated with the user account that have been previously entered by the user and stored for future use. In some such implementations, the user credentials may be stored in any suitable location, such as a remote control device's memory, a media device's memory, a server with which the remote control device communicates, and/or other suitable location.

In a more specific example, during configuration of the media device and/or remote control device, the user may be prompted to provide user account information (eg, user name and password) for one or more media content streaming services, content provider services, payment services, and the like. there is. Such user account information or portions of user account information may be associated with a provided fingerprint (eg, where user account information is stored on a media device, stored on a remote control device, stored on a remote network location, etc.) . For example, a user with a stored fingerprint may associate specific user account information (eg, preferred payment service, preferred two media content providers, etc.) for authentication.

In response to receiving a fingerprint using the fingerprint sensor of the remote control device and identifying the user associated with the received fingerprint, the remote control device may cause the user account associated with the identified user to be authenticated at the media device and the remote control device. In turn, the user of the remote control device may be provided with content recommendations and usable content items, for example from a service corresponding to the authenticated user account.

Continuing with this example, each user account can be associated with multiple user profiles (eg, a super profile and a sub profile). In some implementations, a default user profile can be associated with an identified user (eg, a parent user profile). In some implementations, upon initially entering user account information, the user of the remote control device may be prompted to select a user profile for the user account for association with the identifier user and fingerprint information.

At 308 , process 300 can present an indication of content available on the media device based on the authenticated user account. For example, if the authenticated user account is a user account of a user corresponding to a specific media content streaming service, process 300 causes display of content available through the specific media content service to be presented based on the authenticated user account. can do. Continuing with this example, process 300 can display available content that is recommended to the user based on previous viewing history associated with the user's account. In some implementations, process 300 can cause an indication to be presented in any suitable way. For example, in some implementations, process 300 can present an indication of available content in a series of rows, each row for a different content genre and/or different type of personalized recommendation based on the user's account. respond As a more specific example, in some implementations, process 300 can present a first column of available content representing media content items that the user has previously started but not completed (e.g., of a television series). next episode, episode or movie the user previously started but did not complete, etc.). As another more specific example, in some implementations, process 300 may include a content item related to a subject of a previously viewed content item, a content item that includes an actor appearing in a previously viewed content item, and/or any content items based on previous viewing history. may present a second row of available content recommended to the user, such as other pertinent personalized recommendations. As another more specific example, in some implementations, process 300 may determine popularity with other users, popularity with users of similar demographics to users associated with the user account, and/or any other suitable criterion or factor. may present a third row of available content that includes recommendations based on any other suitable criteria or factors, such as

In some implementations, where multiple media content services (eg, multiple media content streaming services) are available, the remote control device can enable a user to toggle between media content services. In some such implementations, a user account corresponding to each media content service may be authenticated, allowing the user to browse personalized representations of content available in each media content service without having to separately log in to each user account. there is. In some such implementations, a user may switch from browsing a first media content service to a second media content service in any suitable manner, such as by pressing a specific key or specific key sequence on a remote control device.

Additionally, in some implementations, in response to causing an indication of available content items to be presented to the media device, process 300 may cause any suitable soft buttons or user interface controls for navigating the available content items to appear on the remote control. It can be presented in the display area. For example, in some implementations, process 300 may cause a directional pad to be presented on the display area of the remote control, and select buttons and/or any other suitable user interface controls to be presented on the display area of the remote control. .

At 310, process 300 can receive a selection of an available content item via the remote control device. In some implementations, process 300 can receive a selection in any suitable way. For example, in some implementations, process 300 can receive a selection by determining that a highlighted available content item has been selected via a button press received by the remote control device. The button may be a physical button of the remote control device or a soft button presented in a display area of the remote control device in the case where a selection of available content items is received through a button press.

At 312 , process 300 can cause the selected content item to begin presenting to the paired media device. In some implementations, process 300 can cause the selected content item to begin presenting in any suitable way and using any suitable technique(s). For example, in some implementations, process 300 can transmit an identifier of the selected content item to a server hosting the selected content item. Continuing the example, in some implementations, a server may begin streaming the selected content item to a media device. In another example, in some implementations, process 300 launches an application associated with a media content service that provides a selected content item to a media device, automatically authenticates a corresponding user account of the media content service, and uses the received fingerprint automatically selects a profile associated with a user account of a media content service based on an identified user associated with, and obtains a selected content item from the media content service and causes the media device to start playing the selected content item. You can send commands to your application.

At 314, process 300 can update the content displayed on the remote device based on the presentation of the content item on the paired media device. In some implementations, process 300 can update content displayed on any suitable portion of the remote control device, such as a display area of the remote control device, as described and shown above with respect to FIG. 2A.

In some implementations, process 300 can update the content displayed on the remote control device in any suitable way. For example, in some implementations, process 300 can cause controls corresponding to content presented on a media device to be presented on a remote control device. As a more specific example, in some implementations, process 300 can cause controls to be presented to a remote control device for manipulating playback of a media content item. As a specific example, during playback of a media content item, process 300 may cause a pause button to be presented on the remote control device. Continuing this particular example further, when playback of a media content item is paused, process 300 can cause the pause button to be replaced with a play button on the remote control device.

As another example, in some implementations, process 300 can cause supplemental content related to a media content item presented on a media device to be presented on a remote control device. As a more specific example, in some implementations, where the media content item is a sports game, process 300 provides information about the game and/or teams playing in the game, such as teams participating in the game, the game Statistics of participating players, statistics of other teams in the same league not participating in the game, and/or other appropriate information may be presented. As another more specific example, in some implementations, where the media content item is a television episode or a movie, process 300 provides information relating to an actor appearing in the media content item, such as the actor's name, other appearances in which the actor appears. An indication of the show or movie and/or other pertinent actor information may be presented. As another more specific example, in some implementations, where a media content item includes background music, process 300 can cause an identifier of the music to be presented on the remote control device.

Referring to FIG. 4A , an example 400 of a user interface that may be presented on a remote control device in accordance with some implementations of the disclosed subject matter is shown. For example, if the presented content item is a sports game, the remote control device presents a group of selectable inputs (e.g., buttons 402 and 404) with labels such as "Player Stats", "Team Stats", and the like. can do. Continuing the example further, in some implementations selecting a particular button may present content corresponding to the selected button. In FIG. 4B , an example 450 of a user interface that may be presented in response to a selectable input for “player statistics” is shown in accordance with some implementations of the disclosed subject matter. As shown in FIG. 4B , user interface 450 may include content items 452 and 454 corresponding to statistics for individual players. Continuing the example further, in some implementations, the user can use the back button 456 to navigate back to a group of selectable inputs (eg, user interface 400 of FIG. 4A ). The user interfaces shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B are exemplary only and in some implementations, any suitable user interface may be presented including any suitable content related to a content item presented on a media device.

In some implementations, process 300 can cause content to be presented on a display area of a remote control device using any suitable technique(s). For example, in some implementations, the remote control device can receive an indication of content to be presented from any suitable source.

As a more specific example, in some implementations, a media device provides content to be presented to the remote device from a server associated with the media content item being presented (eg, the server hosting the media content item, and/or any other suitable server). Receive and the media device can transmit to the remote control device to present the content. Continuing the example, an application running on the media device and associated with a presented media content item can receive content for presentation at the remote device (eg, in user interface 450 ). The media device may transmit the received content to the remote control device (eg, via a Bluetooth low energy connection between the remote control device and the media device). In response, the remote control device may cause presentation of the received content to be presented in a display area of the remote control device (eg, content items 452 and 454 of user interface 450 in FIG. 4B ).

As another more specific example, in some implementations, the remote control device directly receives an indication of content from a server associated with a presented media content item (eg, a server hosting the media content item and/or any other suitable server). can do. In some implementations, the presentation of content to be presented on the remote control device may include instructions for presenting specific graphical content, instructions for presenting specific user interface controls for navigation, or presenting text, images or icons relating to specific supplemental content. and/or other suitable information or instructions. For example, in response to a particular media content item being presented to a media device, a server associated with the presented media content item may send a content representation directly to the remote control device (eg, over a wireless link between the server and the remote control device). through). In response, the remote control device may cause presentation of the received content to be presented in a display area of the remote control device (eg, content items 452 and 454 of user interface 450 in FIG. 4B ).

Process 300 can then loop back to 312 and continue presenting the content item to the media device. Process 300 may then proceed to 314 and may further update the content presented to the remote control device based on the content presented to the media device. For example, if a first actor was previously presented in a first scene displayed in the content item, the remote control device may send information about the first actor (eg, detailed biography related to the first actor, other TV shows in which the first actor appeared). name of the show or movie and/or other pertinent information) may have been previously given. Continuing this example, if the content item includes a second scene that includes a second actor, the remote control device may send information about the second actor (eg, a detailed biography related to the second actor, where the second actor appeared) names of other TV shows or movies and/or other appropriate information). In some implementations, process 300 can cause content presented to the remote control device to be updated at any suitable time and at any suitable frequency. For example, in some implementations, the remote control device pushes updates to the content (eg, from a server, from a media device, and/or from any other suitable source) at a time corresponding to a change in the media content item. It can be. As another example, in some implementations, the remote control device is sent (e.g., from a server, media device) at any suitable regular frequency (e.g., once per minute, once every 5 minutes, and/or other suitable frequency). Updates to the content may be pushed from, and/or from any other suitable source.

In cases where the systems discussed herein collect or use personal information about users, programs or configurations that provide users with user information (e.g., the user's social networks, social actions) or activities, job, user's preferences, or user's current location) may be provided with an opportunity to control whether information is collected. Additionally, certain data is treated in one or more various ways before it is stored or used, so that personal information is removed. For example, the user's identity is treated so that no personally identifiable information about the user can be determined, or the user's geographic location is generalized from where the location information was obtained (to the city, zip code, or state level), so that the user's No specific location can be determined. Thus, the user may have control over how information about the user is collected and used by the content server.

Accordingly, systems, methods and media are provided for providing an improved remote control.

In some implementations, any suitable computer readable medium may be used to store instructions for performing the processes described herein. For example, in some implementations, computer readable media can be transitory or non-transitory. For example, non-transitory computer readable media may include magnetic media (e.g., hard disk, floppy disk, etc.), optical media (e.g., compact disc, digital video disc, Blu-ray disc, etc.), semiconductor media (e.g., flash memory, media such as EPROM (Electrically Programmable Read Only Memory), EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), etc.), suitable media that is neither temporary nor permanent during transmission, and/or suitable tangible media. As another example, transitory computer readable media may include networks, wires, conductors, optical fibers, signals in circuits, any suitable medium that is transitory and non-permanent during transmission, and/or any suitable intangible medium.

The above-described steps of the process described with respect to FIG. 3 may be executed or performed in any order or sequence, not limited to the order and sequence shown and described in the figure. Further, some of the steps of the process of FIG. 3 may be executed or performed substantially concurrently or in parallel where appropriate to reduce latency and processing time.

It should also be noted that, as used herein, the term mechanism may include hardware, software, firmware, or any suitable combination thereof.

Although the present invention has been described and illustrated in the foregoing exemplary embodiments, this disclosure is made by way of example only and many changes to the details of the embodiments of the present invention do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention, which is limited only by the following claims. It should be understood that it can be done without The components of the disclosed implementations can be combined and reconfigured in a variety of ways.

Claims (21)

As a method of using an improved remote control,
In the remote control, detecting the user's fingerprint using the fingerprint sensor of the remote control;
identifying the user from a plurality of users based on the fingerprint;
authenticating, without user input, a user account corresponding to the identified user, the user account being associated with a media content service that hosts media content items and provides them to media devices paired with the remote controller;
causing a plurality of indications of available media content items to be presented to a media device based on the authenticated user account;
receiving a display selection of usable media content items through the remote controller;
causing the selected media content item to begin presenting to the media device paired with the remote control; and
causing content associated with the media content item to be presented in a display area of the remote control concurrently with presentation of the media content item to the media device. The method of claim 1 , further comprising automatically selecting a user profile from the user account associated with a plurality of user profiles based on the fingerprint. The method of claim 1 , further comprising causing a plurality of indications of available media content items to be presented on the media device while simultaneously causing a first control for navigating through the plurality of indications to be presented in a display area of the remote control. How to. The method according to claim 1 , wherein a second control for manipulating playback of the selected media content item is presented in a display area of the remote control simultaneously with causing the selected media content item to begin presenting on the media device paired with the remote control. The method further comprising the step of causing. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of indications of usable media content items are personalized recommendations identified based on the authenticated user account. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of indications are received from a server associated with the media content service that hosts and provides the media content items to the media device. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of indications are received from the media device. The method of claim 1,
authenticating, without user input, a second user account corresponding to the identified user, wherein the second user account is associated with a second media content service that hosts media content items and provides them to media devices paired with the remote control; ;
receiving, through the remote controller, an input for switching to media content item browsing usable through the second media content service; and
causing presentation of a second plurality of indications of media content items available through the second media content service to a media device based on the authenticated second user account. The method according to claim 1, further comprising measuring a physiological parameter of the user using a sensor of the remote controller. The method according to claim 1, wherein the fingerprint sensor is located on a rear surface of the remote control, and the display area is located on a front surface of the remote control. A remote control device providing an improved remote control, comprising:
fingerprint sensor;
display area; and
a hardware processor coupled to the fingerprint sensor and the display area, the hardware processor comprising:
detecting a user's fingerprint using a fingerprint sensor of the remote control device;
identify the user from a plurality of users based on the fingerprint;
without user input, authenticating a user account corresponding to the identified user, the user account being associated with a media content service that hosts media content items and provides them to media devices paired with the remote control device;
cause a plurality of indications of available media content items to be presented to a media device based on the authenticated user account;
receive a display selection of an usable media content item via the remote control device;
cause the selected media content item to begin presenting to the media device paired with the remote control device; and
and causing content related to the media content item to be presented in a display area of the remote controller concurrently with presentation of the media content item to the media device. The remote control device of claim 11 , wherein the hardware processor is further configured to automatically select a user profile from the user account associated with a plurality of user profiles based on the fingerprint. 12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the hardware processor causes a plurality of indications of usable media content items to be presented on the media device while simultaneously causing a first control for navigating the plurality of indications to be presented in a display area of the remote control. Further configured, the remote control device. 12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the hardware processor causes the selected media content item to begin presenting to the media device paired with the remote control while a second control for manipulating playback of the selected media content item is provided on the remote control. The remote control device, further configured to be presented in a display area. The remote control device of claim 11 , wherein the plurality of indications of usable media content items are personalized recommendations identified based on the authenticated user account. The remote control device of claim 11 , wherein the plurality of indications are received from a server associated with the media content service that hosts and provides the media content items to the media device. 12. The remote control device of claim 11, wherein the plurality of indications are received from the media device. The method of claim 11 , wherein the hardware processor:
Without user input, authenticate a second user account corresponding to the identified user, the second user account being associated with a second media content service that hosts media content items and provides them to media devices paired with the remote control device; ;
receive an input for switching to media content item browsing available through the second media content service; and
and cause a second plurality of indications of media content items available through the second media content service to be presented to the media device based on the authenticated second user account. 12. The remote control device of claim 11, wherein the hardware processor is further configured to measure a physiological parameter of the user using a sensor of the remote control device. The remote control device according to claim 11, wherein the fingerprint sensor is located on a rear surface of the remote control device, and the display area is located on a front surface of the remote control device. A non-transitory computer-readable medium containing computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause a hardware processor to perform a method for providing an enhanced remote control, the method comprising:
In the remote control, detecting the user's fingerprint using the fingerprint sensor of the remote control;
identifying the user from a plurality of users based on the fingerprint;
authenticating, without user input, a user account corresponding to the identified user, the user account being associated with a media content service that hosts media content items and provides them to media devices paired with the remote controller;
causing a plurality of indications of available media content items to be presented to a media device based on the authenticated user account;
receiving a display selection of usable media content items through the remote controller;
causing the selected media content item to begin presenting to the media device paired with the remote control; and
causing content associated with the media content item to be presented in a display area of the remote control concurrently with presentation of the media content item to the media device.

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